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Department of History

The Department of History provides intellectual leadership for the Museum. We develop, help maintain, and employ our collections and scholarship to preserve our country's material culture and to present challenging ideas about our country's past through exhibits, public programs, publications, and other outreach activities.

Staff of the department's seven divisions conduct scholarly research on topics related to the Museum's collections and American history; build, document, manage, and interpret Museum collections; disseminate information about American history and the Museum's collections; educate the public through exhibitions, public programs, performances, and publications in diverse media; work with communities to explore and interpret the past; and help secure outside support for Museum projects.